Hope Dangles on a String
by L3ftOfCent3r
Summary: Hook attempts to do the heroic thing and reunite Emma with Neal, but the pirate in him can't help but take a few detours on the path to finding Emma's lost love.
1. Chapter 1

The glow from the fire cast a warm light on Emma Swan as she sat before it, unaware she was being watched from the shadows of the jungle. To Hook, she appeared ethereal; a gleaming beacon of hope in his dark existence. A beacon of hope that had been snuffed out for him by Pan's bloody secret. Hook leaned against a palm tree and took a long swig from his bottle as he considered rejoining the group.

_Baelfire._ He thought grimly as his eyes rose from his bottle to glance again at the woman sitting by the fire. _Baelfire's alive and in Neverland._

The words were more easily thought than confessed aloud, but the secret weighed so heavy on his mind that he considered doing little else than relieving his bottle of its contents. Hook took another drink.

_What would those hero types do? Share the happy news? Vow to reunite her with her lost love?_

Hook gave a bitter sigh.

_To what end? The hope that my heroic selflessness may win her heart?_

Doubtful, Hook raised the bottle to his mouth again, but then abruptly froze. His eyebrow rose in consideration, and a moment later a smirk played at his lips.

_Aye. _He thought. _Perhaps my selflessness may win her heart._

Hook tucked his bottle back into his coat, and then sauntered into the clearing. Just as Emma looked up to see him, a gust of wind blew the fire out. With a gasp from the rest of the search party and a crackle of magic in the air, Rumpelstiltskin appeared in the clearing.

"Where is he?" he demanded, looking desperate as his eyes scanned the group.

Emma was instantly on her feet.

"Where's who?" she asked as she examined him with a quirked brow, "And what's with the war paint?"

The Dark One gave her a weary look and ignored her commentary on his appearance.

"Bae," he clarified and Hook quickly averted his eyes to the ground. "Baelfire's alive," Rumpelstiltskin continued, "He's here in Neverland, with Henry, and Pan won't be far behind them."

"Neal?" Emma spoke his name in disbelief. It was a breathy sound as if she had used the last bit of air in her lungs to say it. "How? It's not possible."

Her mother was quick to rush to her side in hopes of comforting her, but Hook could see by the look on Emma's face that she had too long given up hope to believe the Crocodile's words. However regrettable, his words were true, and Hook had waited too long to tell her.

"He speaks the truth, love." he admitted as he took a step forward.

All eyes were quick to turn on him then, and the Prince, who he thought he had befriended, was quick to unsheathe his sword.

"What do you know about it?" he hissed through his teeth as he rushed towards him.

The sound of metal clanking against metal rang-out through the clearing as a shiny hook deflected the blade of the sword.

"Easy, mate," Hook grunted as he locked eyes with Emma's father, "I only just found out myself."

David slowly withdrew his sword and Hook met Emma's suspicious gaze.

"I was coming to tell you, love, but the Crocodile beat me to it," Hook explained as he felt the Dark One glaring at him, "I'd have come sooner, but I lack the ability to go popping in and out of places as I please."

Rumpelstiltskin humphed at that and Emma stared wide-eyed at the ground, needing a moment to come to terms with what she was hearing. _Neal's alive? _Emma again turned her gaze on Hook.

"How did you find out?"

"Pan dropped by to tell me the news," he replied, and then his mouth curved into a smile, "Just as I sat out to collect _firewood_, as it were."

Emma narrowed her eyes at him.

"We have plenty of firewood." Regina suspiciously accused him.

Emma's jaw tightened and she suddenly felt defensive.

"The more firewood the better!" she exclaimed as she marched up to Hook, "Now tell me what Pan said to you!"

Hook swallowed at the memory of the last time she had been in such close proximity to him. With her seeking eyes staring up at him, right into his very soul, he found it hard to utter a single word. Anything he said would be his undoing. Lie, and she would know it. Tell the truth, and he would be revealing just how much their kiss had meant to him. Hook settled on a third option.

"Pan has Neal and I have a good idea of where we might find him."

Emma searched his face for any sign of betrayal and it wounded him. There was no hint of mutual affection in her eyes. Their kiss had apparently changed nothing for her. Hook quickly resigned himself to harden his heart as well. He looked away from Emma to address the others.

"We should set-out at first light and—"

"No," Emma interrupted him and Hook was confused, "We go now."

"Emma!" Mary Margaret complained.

"Just me and Hook." she spoke with an authority that about knocked the wind out of him, "If this turns out to be another one of Pan's games, and we lose—Well," Emma swallowed hard as she looked at Regina, "At least, Henry still has _one_ mom. But I already thought I lost Neal once. I can't go through that again. I have to do this."

"Emma—" David protested.

"No," she stopped him as she gestured to the rest of the group, "They need you."

Regina rolled her eyes at that.

"And what exactly do you expect us do while you're off traipsing through the jungle for your ex-boyfriend?"

Emma turned from Regina to Rumpelstiltskin, and she made a face at the sight of his "warrior makeup". The Dark One was unfazed by her judging eyes.

"I expect Gold to stop messing around and work together with the rest of the group. We need to get it together and figure out some way to kick Pan's ass! There has to be a way out of this."

The Charming's nodded their agreement, while Gold and Regina looked indifferent. Hook, on the other hand, just looked at Emma, admiring her take-charge attitude, and then watching as she quickly gathered-up supplies for their trek. _Their_ trek. Hook was well aware of his usefulness when it came to navigating the jungles of Neverland, but there was no reason why another member of their party couldn't join them. Emma wanted to be alone with him, or, at least, that's what he secretly hoped.

"Hook!" Emma called-out his name as if she had called it one time too many.

The pirate quickly broke from his thoughts to regard the woman seeking his attention. She gave him another one of her suspiciously guarded looks and then made an impatient gesture with her arm.

"Lead the way."

A sly smile tugged at the corner of Hook's mouth and he gave a slight bow, replying, "As you wish."

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**A/N: Not gonna lie. I don't have an outline for this story, but my plans for it aren't that ambitious. It shouldn't be over 5 chapters. :) **

**Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

Hook knew that the chance of Emma picking him over the father of her child was slim to none. He knew this just as well as he knew that the winds on the west side of the island grew exceptionally cold at night, which was his entire reasoning for leading her there in the first place.

"Getting a bit chilled, are we?" Hook smiled as he noticed the way the blonde woman used her hands to warm her bare shoulders, "Here, allow me."

Emma stopped walking as he removed his coat, and then came before her to drape it over her shoulders. It was surprisingly heavy and she didn't miss the overly-pleased smile that was on his face as he put the black leather around her.

"Thanks," she mumbled as she eyed him suspiciously, "So, where do you think we'll find Neal?"

Hook continued walking again, and once his back was turned to her, he gave a bitter roll of his eyes. _Neal, Neal, Neal. All this talk of Neal._

"I suspect we'll find him in a tree." Hook replied as he ducked past a low hanging limb.

"What?" Emma exclaimed as she quickened her steps to follow him.

"Aye," he confirmed her confusion, "I've had to rescue many a crewmate from the same fortune. You see—Pan likes to keep his prisoners dangling from trees in little cages, like trapped birds."

Emma halted as she considered that, and then responded with a casual, "Oh."

Another smile tugged at Hook's lips and he glanced back over his shoulder to see her.

"Just 'oh'?" he asked her curiously, "The man you love is imprisoned in a bird coop and you react with 'oh'?"

Emma gave him a sharp look, staring daggers into his back that he didn't even remotely feel. She wasn't so naïve to believe that Hook was just bursting at the seams to witness her reunion with Neal. She knew better. She even suspected that he hoped they wouldn't find Neal at all.

"Hook!" her call was laced with such a threat that it stopped him in his tracks.

He turned to face her, acknowledging both the warning and the fatigue he saw in her eyes. He also couldn't help but appreciate the way she looked in his coat, all draped in black leather with her blonde hair falling in waves against the lapels. The same lapels she had only just pulled him by, mere hours ago, when she had kissed him. Hook heaved a sigh.

"Are we going to have a problem?" she asked him and the question caught him off guard.

Hook considered playing it dumb, but there was no fooling Emma Swan and it was overly obvious that she wasn't in the mood for games.

"Not at all," he responded coolly, "You made it exceedingly clear that our tryst was a 'one time thing'."

Emma raised a hand to her forehead and rubbed at her brow as if she had a headache. Suddenly, she was really starting to regret that damn kiss.

"However," Hook added and Emma watched how his smile turn into a cocky grin, "I can't be held responsible if, during the course of our journey, my charm and rather striking good looks persuades you to change your mind."

With a roll of her eyes, Emma brushed past him and walked away. Hook sighed his frustration as he watched her go.

"Let's set-up camp, here," she suggested, quick to change the topic of conversation, "We've been walking for hours and it's really late."

"Of course." Hook replied, content to accept any stop for rest that would earn him more of her time.

"I'll be back," Emma said as she started to walk off, "I'm going to go gather up some firewood."

"I wouldn't do that, love," Hook warned her as he gazed off into the shadows of the jungle, "A fire would only signal our presence. It would be unwise to attract that kind of unwanted attention."

"Seriously?" Emma complained, "But it's colder than the butt-crack of Antarctica out here! I mean—does Neverland even have a winter?"

Hook frowned at her words.

"I take it that this Antarctica is quite unfavorable."

Emma tried not to smile, but Hook didn't miss the way a corner of her mouth curved upwards.

"You know," he began as he casually strolled towards her, wearing his infamous grin, "There are other ways of keeping warm on cold nights like these."

Emma gave him a bored look and then shrugged out of his coat.

"No thanks," she replied as she handed the heavy leather garment back to him, "And I'll make it alright with just my blanket."

Hook look offended as he stared at his coat in her offering hands, but reluctantly, he took it from her. He watched as she began arranging her sleeping pallet for the night, and then decided that he should do the same. The warmth from her body could still be felt in the lining of his coat as he put it back on. He felt a pang of guilt that he should be so well-clothed while she slept under a thread-bare blanket that was taken from his ship. Of course, his guilt only lasted until the chattering of her teeth grew louder than the nighttime sounds of Neverland.

"Swan," Hook complained as he repositioned his head against the log he had found for a pillow, "Must you keep making that noise? It's terribly hard to sleep listening to you freeze to death."

He could hear Emma huff-out a jagged breath that he imagined came-out as white smoke since his eyes were closed from seeing it.

"Tough," Emma managed to reply through her chattering teeth, "You should have let me build a fire!"

Hook smiled at that.

"There's a fire right here, love."

Shivering, Emma turned over on her pallet so she could see what he was referring too. Even with his eyes closed, somehow, he could still tell when she was looking at him. Hook smiled from the bed he had made himself in the earth, and then his arm raised to point a finger down at himself. Emma glared at him. Yes, even in her shivering cold state, Emma still managed to muster-up enough fire to glare at him. However, what neither one of them could have expected was for Emma to get up from her sleeping pallet.

"Oof!" Hook let-out a breath as if he'd been kicked in the gut and suddenly cold fingers were clinging to him for warmth.

Hook's eyes shot open to find the top of Emma's head pressed against his chest as she cuddled-up to him. Her arms snaked inside his coat and around his middle, embracing him with the same fervor he'd felt in her kiss. It made his heart race and it took his breath away. Finally one of his plans had been successful! Yet, after only a moment of having her body pressed against his, he could feel the frigidness of her skin melting into his own, and it made him shiver.

"Emma love, you're freezing!" he exclaimed as his arms tightly encircled her, and he suddenly hated himself for leading her to the cold part of the island.

_Bloody pirate._ He cursed himself.

"I'm wa-warning you now," Emma stuttered-out, "Do anything inappropriate with that hand and th-they'll be calling you Captain Hooks."

Hook chuckled at that.

"Trust me, darling. I would never stoop to violate a half-frozen woman."

Emma murmured her acceptance of his answer, and then pressed her cold nose into his chest. As it were, Hook's hand rubbed vigorously at her back, trying to warm her, and Emma uttered no complaint. With every contented sigh she gave against him, Hook found it that much harder to follow through with their rescue plans. It was a cruel twist of fate that he should learn that her lost love was alive just moments after he himself had come alive again—alive from her kiss. And Hook wondered just how it was that Emma and Baelfire had ever come to meet. With that thought in mind, he glanced down at the blonde head that was pressed against his chest.

"Emma?" he whispered her name, "Are you awake?"

The blonde woman mumbled something incoherent and nuzzled her face against him as if his chest were a pillow.

"Hmm, you smell like the ocean and...Thanksgiving." she muttered sleepily.

Hook quirked an eyebrow.

"I take it that Thanksgiving is something favorable."

Emma made no other sounds. At one point, he thought he heard her snore, but he couldn't be certain. She was asleep in his arms and Hook would wager that not even the battle cries of the Lost One's could disturb this moment for him. With his hook, he very delicately brushed a strand of hair from her face, and then felt an ache of longing in his chest at how peaceful she looked. Hook knew that the odds of having another moment with her, like this one, weren't very good. He knew that it was only by the success of his misleading plan that she had ended up in his arms at all. As Hook repositioned himself beneath her, falling into a more comfortable niche, he held on to the hope that he could still change her mind. He hoped that she would see him as more than just a pirate and give him a chance to be more than just a "one time thing". Or, at the very least, he hoped that Emma Swan wouldn't be too angry with him when she discovered just how far off course he had taken her.

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**A/N: Hey! Thanks everyone for the reviews, favs and follows! I'm glad y'all liked the first chapter, but I should warn you all that I am not a hardcore Captain Swan shipper. Don't get me wrong! I love me some Captain Hook, but I'm also a Neal fan. When it comes to Captain Swan or SwanFire...I'm totally on the fence. This story might turn out to reflect that. I don't know. Just wanted to give y'all a heads up.**

**Thanks for reading! ;)**


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